1.4.3
Types of Earthquake
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Types of Earthquakes
Earthquakes happen within the Earth at different depths. There are 2 main types of earthquakes:

What is a shallow-focus earthquake?
- Shallow-focus earthquakes are earthquakes where the focus (the point underground where the energy radiates from) is close to the Earth's surface.
- Shallow-focus earthquakes have a focus that is between 0km and 70km under the Earth's surface.

What is a deep-focus earthquake?
- Deep-focus earthquakes are earthquakes where the focus (the point underground where the energy radiates from) is far away from the Earth's surface.
- Deep-focus earthquakes have a focus that is more than 70km under the Earth's surface.
- Deep-focus earthquakes usually happen at convergent plate margins, where crust has previously been forced downwards by another plate towards the Earth's core.
- Deep-focus earthquakes are generally less damaging because the focus is so far from the Earth's surface.

What are underwater earthquakes?
- Underwater earthquakes move the bottom of the sea (the seabed).
- This can displace water and can create tsunamis (series of enormous waves).
- Waves can pick up a lot of speed in deep oceans, so tsunamis like the one that hit Japan in 2011 can catch people off-guard and cause many deaths.
1Physical Geography
1.1River Environments
1.1.1Weathering1.1.2Mass Movement1.1.3Erosion1.1.4Transportation1.1.5Deposition1.1.6River Landforms: Waterfalls & Gorges1.1.7River Landforms: Interlocking Spurs1.1.8River Landforms: Flood Plains1.1.9River Landforms: Point Bars1.1.10River Landforms: Levees1.1.11River Landforms: Meanders1.1.12River Landforms: Oxbow Lakes1.1.13River Landscape Changes: Long Profile1.1.14River Landscape Changes: Cross Profile1.1.15Vertical & Lateral Erosion1.1.16Flood Risk Factors1.1.17Human Activities on Rivers1.1.18River Management: Hard Engineering1.1.19River Management: Soft Engineering1.1.20Case Study: The River Eden - Landforms1.1.21Case Study: The River Eden - Climate1.1.22Case Study: The River Eden - Geology1.1.23Case Study: The River Eden - Management1.1.24Case Study: The River Eden - Human Activity1.1.25End of Topic Test - River Environments
1.2Coastal Environments
1.2.1Weathering1.2.2Mass Movement1.2.3Erosion1.2.4Deposition1.2.5Longshore Drift1.2.6Sediment Transportation1.2.7Wave Action on Coasts1.2.8Other Factors Influencing Coasts1.2.9Coastal Landforms: Wave-cut Platforms & Cliffs1.2.10Coastal Landforms: Headlands & Bays1.2.11Coastal Landforms: Caves, Arches & Stacks1.2.12Coastal Deposition1.2.13Spits, Bars & Sand Dunes1.2.14Human Activity on Coasts1.2.15Coastal Defences: Hard Engineering1.2.16Coastal Defences: Soft Engineering1.2.17Coastal Defences: Managed Retreat1.2.18Case Study: Holderness Coast Overview1.2.19Case Study: Holderness Coast Management1.2.20Case Study: Holderness Coast Defences1.2.21End of Topic Test - Coastal Environments
1.3Hazardous Environments - Tropical Cyclones
1.3.1Characteristics of a Tropical Cyclone1.3.2Structure of a Tropical Cyclone1.3.3Physical Hazards of Tropical Cyclones1.3.4The Impacts of Tropical Cyclones1.3.5Responses to Tropical Cyclones1.3.6Vulnerability to Tropical Cyclones1.3.7Preparing for Tropical Cyclones1.3.8Case Study: Katrina1.3.9Case Study: Nargis
2Human Geography
2.1Economic Activity & Energy
2.2Rural Environments
3Global Issues
3.1Fragile Environments & Climate Change
3.2Globalisation & Migration
3.2.1Globalisation - Transport3.2.2Globalisation - Communication Networks & Banking3.2.3Push & Pull Factors3.2.4TNCs & Globalisation3.2.5Tourism Landscapes3.2.6The Growth of Tourism3.2.7The Economic Benefits of Tourism3.2.8The Social & Cultural Benefits of Tourism3.2.9The Economic Costs of Tourism3.2.10The Social & Cultural Costs of Tourism3.2.11Managing Tourism - Sustainability3.2.12Managing Tourism - Quotas & Tourism Hubs
3.3Development & Human Welfare
3.3.1Ways of Defining Development3.3.2Different Ways of Measuring Development3.3.3Environmental Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.4Historical Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.5Economic Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.6Patterns of Development3.3.7How Can we Reduce the Global Development Gap?3.3.8Top-Down & Bottom-Up Development
Jump to other topics
1Physical Geography
1.1River Environments
1.1.1Weathering1.1.2Mass Movement1.1.3Erosion1.1.4Transportation1.1.5Deposition1.1.6River Landforms: Waterfalls & Gorges1.1.7River Landforms: Interlocking Spurs1.1.8River Landforms: Flood Plains1.1.9River Landforms: Point Bars1.1.10River Landforms: Levees1.1.11River Landforms: Meanders1.1.12River Landforms: Oxbow Lakes1.1.13River Landscape Changes: Long Profile1.1.14River Landscape Changes: Cross Profile1.1.15Vertical & Lateral Erosion1.1.16Flood Risk Factors1.1.17Human Activities on Rivers1.1.18River Management: Hard Engineering1.1.19River Management: Soft Engineering1.1.20Case Study: The River Eden - Landforms1.1.21Case Study: The River Eden - Climate1.1.22Case Study: The River Eden - Geology1.1.23Case Study: The River Eden - Management1.1.24Case Study: The River Eden - Human Activity1.1.25End of Topic Test - River Environments
1.2Coastal Environments
1.2.1Weathering1.2.2Mass Movement1.2.3Erosion1.2.4Deposition1.2.5Longshore Drift1.2.6Sediment Transportation1.2.7Wave Action on Coasts1.2.8Other Factors Influencing Coasts1.2.9Coastal Landforms: Wave-cut Platforms & Cliffs1.2.10Coastal Landforms: Headlands & Bays1.2.11Coastal Landforms: Caves, Arches & Stacks1.2.12Coastal Deposition1.2.13Spits, Bars & Sand Dunes1.2.14Human Activity on Coasts1.2.15Coastal Defences: Hard Engineering1.2.16Coastal Defences: Soft Engineering1.2.17Coastal Defences: Managed Retreat1.2.18Case Study: Holderness Coast Overview1.2.19Case Study: Holderness Coast Management1.2.20Case Study: Holderness Coast Defences1.2.21End of Topic Test - Coastal Environments
1.3Hazardous Environments - Tropical Cyclones
1.3.1Characteristics of a Tropical Cyclone1.3.2Structure of a Tropical Cyclone1.3.3Physical Hazards of Tropical Cyclones1.3.4The Impacts of Tropical Cyclones1.3.5Responses to Tropical Cyclones1.3.6Vulnerability to Tropical Cyclones1.3.7Preparing for Tropical Cyclones1.3.8Case Study: Katrina1.3.9Case Study: Nargis
2Human Geography
2.1Economic Activity & Energy
2.2Rural Environments
3Global Issues
3.1Fragile Environments & Climate Change
3.2Globalisation & Migration
3.2.1Globalisation - Transport3.2.2Globalisation - Communication Networks & Banking3.2.3Push & Pull Factors3.2.4TNCs & Globalisation3.2.5Tourism Landscapes3.2.6The Growth of Tourism3.2.7The Economic Benefits of Tourism3.2.8The Social & Cultural Benefits of Tourism3.2.9The Economic Costs of Tourism3.2.10The Social & Cultural Costs of Tourism3.2.11Managing Tourism - Sustainability3.2.12Managing Tourism - Quotas & Tourism Hubs
3.3Development & Human Welfare
3.3.1Ways of Defining Development3.3.2Different Ways of Measuring Development3.3.3Environmental Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.4Historical Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.5Economic Factors Causing Uneven Development3.3.6Patterns of Development3.3.7How Can we Reduce the Global Development Gap?3.3.8Top-Down & Bottom-Up Development
Practice questions on Types of Earthquake
Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.
- 1What are the causes of deep-focus earthquakes?Fill in the list
- 2How deep is the focus of deep-focus earthquakes?Multiple choice
- 3
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